Monday, March 31, 2008
Belfast Lord Mayor Jim Rodgers last night hit out at so-called football fans who left a man fighting for his life after he was stabbed in broad daylight.
The UUP councillor, who is seeking a meeting with police chiefs over the attack outside Cosgrove's bar on Saturday, urged anyone with information on the incident to contact police.
Trouble flared at the junction of Castle Street and King Street at around 3.30pm when a crowd of between 30 and 40 men - believed to be wearing Linfield football jerseys - attempted to storm the busy pub.
Revellers at the bar had gathered to watch the lunch time Old Firm game.
A 32-year-old man who was walking close to the bar had his throat slashed and last night remained in a critical condition at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
A number of other people were also injured by bricks, bottles and stones during the trouble.
Mr Rodgers has called for more police patrols in the city centre in a bid to combat crime.
Said the Lord Mayor: "It saddens me when this type of awful activity occurs in this tremendous city of ours.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the young man who is in hospital fighting for his life.
"I hope he makes a speedy recovery.
"I welcome the police response to this appalling incident but I just think that there could've been more officers on the ground on Saturday.
"The issue of policing in the city centre is something which concerns me and I intend to speak to senior officers about this shocking incident which has brought shame to our city.
"These thugs are not real football fans and they have simply undermined all the good work that we have been doing to promote the city.
"What sort of message does this send to people hoping to visit the city.
"We need to learn from this incident and I just hope the city doesn't lose its reputation as one of the safest cities in the UK."
West Belfast SDLP representative Margaret Walsh called on the Irish Football Association (IFA) to investigate the disturbances.
She added: "I would also call on the Irish Football Association to investigate the matter in order to establish if the culprits were Linfield fans.
"Communities cannot accept this type of behaviour and sport should not be used as an excuse to carry out violent acts."
Initial reports claimed that the trouble was between fans of Cliftonville and Linfield but this was later denied by a Reds' spokesman.
"Cliftonville Football Club wish to point out that from information received from the PSNI and other sources, that our supporters were not involved in this incident," said the spokesman.
€ In a separate development, IFA head of Community Relations, Michael Boyd, has hit out at death threat made to Cliftonville manager Eddie Patterson.
He added: "The whole football family in Northern Ireland is united in support for Eddie Patterson and his family at this time.
"Eddie Patterson's commitment as a coach, manager and role model promoting positive community relations through football is well known by football people across Northern Ireland."
Belfast Lord Mayor Jim Rodgers last night hit out at so-called football fans who left a man fighting for his life after he was stabbed in broad daylight.
The UUP councillor, who is seeking a meeting with police chiefs over the attack outside Cosgrove's bar on Saturday, urged anyone with information on the incident to contact police.
Trouble flared at the junction of Castle Street and King Street at around 3.30pm when a crowd of between 30 and 40 men - believed to be wearing Linfield football jerseys - attempted to storm the busy pub.
Revellers at the bar had gathered to watch the lunch time Old Firm game.
A 32-year-old man who was walking close to the bar had his throat slashed and last night remained in a critical condition at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
A number of other people were also injured by bricks, bottles and stones during the trouble.
Mr Rodgers has called for more police patrols in the city centre in a bid to combat crime.
Said the Lord Mayor: "It saddens me when this type of awful activity occurs in this tremendous city of ours.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the young man who is in hospital fighting for his life.
"I hope he makes a speedy recovery.
"I welcome the police response to this appalling incident but I just think that there could've been more officers on the ground on Saturday.
"The issue of policing in the city centre is something which concerns me and I intend to speak to senior officers about this shocking incident which has brought shame to our city.
"These thugs are not real football fans and they have simply undermined all the good work that we have been doing to promote the city.
"What sort of message does this send to people hoping to visit the city.
"We need to learn from this incident and I just hope the city doesn't lose its reputation as one of the safest cities in the UK."
West Belfast SDLP representative Margaret Walsh called on the Irish Football Association (IFA) to investigate the disturbances.
She added: "I would also call on the Irish Football Association to investigate the matter in order to establish if the culprits were Linfield fans.
"Communities cannot accept this type of behaviour and sport should not be used as an excuse to carry out violent acts."
Initial reports claimed that the trouble was between fans of Cliftonville and Linfield but this was later denied by a Reds' spokesman.
"Cliftonville Football Club wish to point out that from information received from the PSNI and other sources, that our supporters were not involved in this incident," said the spokesman.
€ In a separate development, IFA head of Community Relations, Michael Boyd, has hit out at death threat made to Cliftonville manager Eddie Patterson.
He added: "The whole football family in Northern Ireland is united in support for Eddie Patterson and his family at this time.
"Eddie Patterson's commitment as a coach, manager and role model promoting positive community relations through football is well known by football people across Northern Ireland."
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